1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a handle assembly, and more particularly to a handle assembly that is detachably mounted to a master gear shaft of a spinning reel.
2. Background Information
A spinning reel generally includes a reel unit which has a handle assembly and is mounted to a fishing rod, a spool around which fishing line is wound and which is mounted to the reel unit such that the spool can move forward and backward, a rotor that is rotatively supported on the reel unit and which winds the fishing line around the spool, and a rotation transmission mechanism that transmits the rotation of the handle assembly to the rotor.
The rotation transmission mechanism includes a master gear, a master gear shaft that is provided on the master gear, and a pinion gear that meshes with the master gear. The rotor is connected to the front portion of the pinion gear.
The handle assembly includes a handle shaft, a handle arm that extends from the handle shaft in the radial direction, and a handle grip that is mounted to the tip of the handle arm. The handle shaft maybe mounted from either the left or the right end of the master gear shaft. The handle assembly may for example be the screw type (see for example Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-231414) because the handle assembly may be mounted on either the left or right end of the master gear shaft.
With the screw type of handle assembly, there will be little jerkiness between the handle shaft and the master gear shaft and the durability thereof will improve because the handle assembly is connected by screwing the handle shaft onto the master gear shaft. With the master gear shaft that serves to mount this type of screw type handle assembly, two types of male threaded portions (large and small) are sequentially formed in the axial direction on the end of the master gear, such that these male threaded portions have different screw directions.
With this type of screw type handle assembly, it is well known to form the handle arm from an aluminum alloy in order to reduce the overall weight thereof, and to form the handle shaft from a stainless steel alloy in order to maintain a high degree of rigidity.
With the aforementioned conventional screw type handle assembly, the overall weight thereof can be reduced because the handle arm is formed from an aluminum alloy. In addition, it is thought that the overall weight of the handle assembly can be reduced by forming the handle shaft from an aluminum alloy. However, when the handle shaft is formed from an aluminum alloy, the rigidity of the handle shaft may decline compared to that of a handle shaft made of a stainless steel alloy. In particular, when the screw portion of the handle shaft is formed from an aluminum alloy, the screw portion may easily break, and an oxidized film may form on the screw surface and will easily corrode and damage the same.
In view of the above, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure that there exists a need for an improved handle assembly for a spinning reel that overcomes the above-described problems of the conventional handle assemblies. This invention addresses this need in the art as well as other needs, which will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure.